Bound by Blood: Book I
by Spartansoldier2
Summary: During WWII, Private Charles Shelton and four other soldiers are sent on a mission to Africa. What they will discover will forever change their lives in this story of friendship and courage as they fight to defend the Pridelands and each other.
1. Welcome to the Airborne

Chapter 1

Welcome to the Airborne

"_Dad would have loved this_." thought the Private as the rest of the 101st Airborne Division marched down the field. Today was graduation from Airborne Basic and he was finally, after a long time of daily runs, classroom sessions, and combat training, earning his wings. "_Crap, the Sergeant, try not to think Charles_." he thought to himself again as the Master Sergeant started to walk down the line, rewarding the wings to the other paratroopers and finally to him. "Congratulations Private Shelton!" said the Master Sergeant as he saluted the Private. "Thank you sir!" replied the Private as he saluted the Master Sergeant. "You earned these wings boy.". In a flash, to what Shelton felt like a minute of glory, the silver wings were attached to his uniform shining in the sunlight. As the Master Sergeant shook his hand, he said slightly quiet, "Your father would have been proud of you with those wings.". Private Shelton in a second, during the greatest moment in his life, felt a sudden moment of sadness. "I know he would have sir, thank you.". He shook his hand one last time as he continued down the line.

The Private looked to the side and closed his eyes. "_Thanks for ruining the moment_." he thought quietly to himself as if he was saying it out loud. Before he had time to pull himself together, he heard someone yell out his name in an ordering way, "PRIVATE SHELTON!! GET YOUR ASS UP HERE!!". "_Damn, what did I do now_?" he was thinking to himself as he ran up to the front of the lines in front of the Major. "Yes sir!". The Major looked to the side at an officer with many medals and ribbons on his uniform. He noticed that the man had a helmet on with stars on it. "_Oh boy, a general, what did I do_?". "Son this is Major General Lewis, he wants to speak to you in private." he said in a calm way as if he never yelled in the first place. "Glad to meet you Private Shelton." he said as he shook Charles's hand. "Nice to meet you too sir.". He was starting to feel uneasy on this. He was starting to sweat and his heart was beating fast, eager for what was going to happen. "Your flying stateside, fly out in two hours.". Shelton was very surprised at what he said there. "For what sir?". The general looked at him and smiled. "Top secret till we are in the states.".

-Two hours later that day-

"_Top secret? Major General Lewis? There is a Major General named Lewis? What is going on!?_" he pondered to himself as he sat on the C-47 aircraft, waiting for the pilot to take off. He noticed four other paratroopers get on the plane and sat across from each other. "Hello." said one of the paratroopers directed to him. Charles looked up at the paratrooper. "Hi." he said slightly confused, trying to be friendly. "What division are you from?". "101st Airborne Division." he said in an instance as if he knew what he was going to say already. "101st eh? Nice!". Shelton tried to ignore the soldier, but decided to continue the conversation. "What about you-", he looked at the patch on his shoulder in amazement. "82nd Airborne Division?". "Private First Class Jonathan Peterson, 82nd Airborne Division." he said as if he was addressing an officer. "Corporal Andrew Vickers, 2nd Rangers." said the soldier next to him. Private Shelton was very surprised at what Vickers said. "Why are you wearing paratrooper gear?". Vickers looked at him slightly confused, "You got me. The Major General ordered me to wear this.". Now Charles was confused at this. "_Why does the Major General require us to wear paratrooper gear_?" he thought to himself. He looked at the soldier next to him. "What military branch are you part of?" he questioned. "Private First Class Christopher Jackson, 1st Infantry Division.". "_What the hell_?" thought Charles. Another soldier started addressing himself. "Private Second Class Simon O'Brian, British PPA Commando's, sir!". A few of the men started to mutter to each other. "A British Commando?". The commando nodded his head and saluted with two fingers. Private Shelton leaned back and closed his eyes as the plane started to move and fly off the runway.


	2. Briefing

Chapter 2

Briefing

"WAKE UP PRIVATE!!". Shelton woke up in a heartbeat surprised and looked around and looked back up at the Major General. "Sorry sir." he said slightly catching his breath. "WHAT DID YOU SAY!?". "Sorry sir!" he said, only yelling. "Pay attention unless you want to die on this mission." said Lewis as he turned around and walked back onto the stand. "As I was saying, this is your drop zone here," he said pointing at a piece of grassland on a large, hanging map. "we call this area the "soft zone" due to this particular piece of lands soft soil so don't expect a hard landing unless you land your asses on rocks," pointing at a rocky area near the grasslands. Peterson rose his hand casually. "Question Peterson?" asked Lewis. "Yes sir, how are Vickers, Jackson, and O'Brian supposed to jump when they are not part of the Airborne?". Everyone stared at Private Peterson and back up at the Major General. "You and Private Shelton will be educating them before the jump." he said. Everyone, including Private Peterson, stared from the Major General to Private Shelton. "What!? I can't teach!" shouted Charles in frustration. "Just teach the basics, son! It should be easy with someone who is one of the best in his Regiment.". Charles hated to be called "son" from his CO's so in a sudden remark, he says, "...I'm not your son.". The other soldiers started to talk amongst themselves when they heard him back talk their Major General. Major General Lewis looked at him and then back up at the map. "Anyway, this area," pointing at a strange rock formation, "is the recon point you must reach.". Some of the soldiers started to write down on their notepads as Lewis talked. "The local African tribes call this rock "Pride Rock" for unknown reasons, once you land, your orders are to reach this landmark as quickly as you can and set up communications as soon as possible. Any questions?"

After two hours of Airborne basic training, Peterson and Shelton were exhausted. "I will never complain about our Sergeant's ever again.". They both laughed a bit. Shelton looked down at his watch. "DAMN IT!!". He looked up at Peterson, "We're late for debrief!". They both started running towards the Briefing Room. Vickers, Jackson, O'Brian, and Major General Lewis were already in the room when they burst through the door. "Sorry sir!" they both said as they quickly sat down in their chairs. "Be lucky you are all leaving today for Africa, so just sit down." Lewis said in a tired yet professional way. He looked slowly from soldier to soldier and smiled. "One month ago, we lost communication with three of our Allied command post's in the region, we think it's because of the German Army but we think that Montgomery kicked Rommel out of Africa, but there are some doubts on that. You five were specially selected for this mission. You are to find any German remnants and eliminate them." Vickers closed his eyes and looked down, muttering something like a prayer. Jackson noticed Vickers and scoffed at him. O'Brian and Peterson were staring at the Major General as if like disciples inspired by a leader. Shelton was looking at his locket he wore around his neck and looked back up at Lewis. "You are the finest soldiers I have ever had the privilege of meeting and I have confidence that you will complete this task without error. Before you leave here today, the locals say that the animals in the region can actually "speak", foolish in my opinion but I am of Indian blood so I believe in things like that, the rest is yours to discover. Good luck.". Major General Lewis then saluted the men like a Private and the rest of them saluted the man as they started to walk to the airfield with gear ready, ready to face the hardships that they all had ahead.


	3. The Night Drop

Chapter 3

The Night Drop

It has been three hours since the last refueling point as the plane slowly gets closer and closer to their DZ. Private Shelton looked up from his M1A1 Thompson Sub-Machine gun and looked at O'Brian and Jackson as they played pin-up card games while Vickers was cleaning his M1 rifle's barrel and Peterson looking out his back window. "ONE MINUTE TILL DROP!!" yelled the pilot as he descended a bit to suitable jump range. "STAND UP!" yelled the Sergeant standing next to the door. Everyone packed up their stuff and stood up ready to hook. "HOOK UP!" ordered the Sergeant forming his fingers into a hook. The men hooked their straps to the ropes above themselves waiting for the light. "EQUIPMENT CHECK!" yelled the officer as he patted his shoulder straps. Everyone was checking their gear and the gear of the man in front of them, making sure that all the straps, weapons, and packs were set tight. "FIVE OK!" yelled Jackson, "FOUR OK!" yelled O'Brian, "THREE OK!" yelled Peterson. As it got to Charles's turn, he anticipated a bit but snapped out of it. "TWO OK!" he yelled, waiting just to get out of that tight plane. "ONE OK!" yelled Vickers. "WAIT FOR THE GREEN LIGHT!" the Sergeant explained, pointing at the lights next to him. Vickers was wearing his cross around his neck. Jackson was looking at it and yelled at Vickers. "YOU THINK THATS GONNA HELP!?" Vickers looked back at him and smiled. "YA IT WILL!" he yelled back. The green light flashed on and everyone got ready to move towards the door. "GO! GO! GO!". Now was Charles's favorite part of the job. He smiled as the line moved forward. First up was Corporal Vickers, grasping his cross as he jumped out the door into the dark. Charles was at the door and looked back at his comrades and he jumped out of the plane.

He looked up as his chute was deployed instantly and watched as the rest of the squad jumped, slowing down the descent to review where their landing positions would be. He looked right of him and what he saw amazed him in all of his years of changing training bases, he saw just miles away, Pride Rock. "_Whoa..._" he thought to himself, not realizing how close he was to the ground. He looked down and tried to bring his legs up. "Ah SHI-". He tried to say as he landed on his back. The parachute landed on top of him and covered him like a giant blanket. "Note to self: DO NOT tell my CO's about this." he told himself, struggling with the parachute. He took out his knife and cut a gash in the parachute and cut off the strings connecting his pack to it. After sheathing his knife, he looked around him, realizing that he was in some kind of canyon of animal skeletons. "Kind of creepy if you ask me." he said out loud as he continued to survey the surrounding area, noticing a large skeleton of an elephant. He pulled out his map and looked over it, muttering to himself. "Where the hell am I?". He took another look in front of him at the elephant skeleton and back down at the map. "The Elephant Graveyard?"


	4. Welcome Parties

Chapter 4

Welcome Parties

"Looks like the sun will be up soon, better find the squad fast." Charles said to himself looking up at the sky. He looked down at his dog tags and read the information on it and thought to himself. "_I'm changing my name when we get to Pride Rock_.". He chuckled to his thoughts and continued to walk, but little did he know that there was someone watching him... He heard a footstep behind him and readied his Thompson, aiming where the sound originated from. "Flash!" he yelled, awaiting a reply from a squad member. Nothing responded. He started to step back a bit, slightly worried. "Jackson?" he said quietly as he slowly continued to walk backwards and began to turn around, when something sprang out at the Private from the rocks at high speed. The paratrooper, already alarmed, rolled out of the way in time to see the assailant. When he saw what it was, he was stunned for a moment. Before him, stood a lightly brown-coated lioness, whom he noticed to have a tuft of hair on her head, some of it over her eye partially. "_A lioness with bangs? Thats new!_" he thought to himself, trying his best not to look hostile. The lioness stood there, like she was ready to pounce on him, and just growled at him. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" said the lioness in an an angry tone yet he heard a bit of mercy in the lioness's question. His face showed a shocked expression after hearing her speak. "Di...Did you just speak?" he asked her, stuttering in disbelief of what he heard. "Ya I can talk, what's so weird about that?" she asked slightly frustrated. "Its just that-" He stopped, trying not to offend the lioness. He started to relax his muscles and sat down on a large rock. He felt reluctant to tell her everything, but in a situation like this with no knowledge of the region or what to expect, he decided to give her the information. "Private First Class Charles Shelton, 101st Airborne Division. My squad and I are under direct orders for a top secret operation, we dropped just an hour ago." He looked down and back up at her, "And what's your name if you don't mind me asking?" She gave him a small grin, "My name is Vitani."

"Vitani?" Charles said, repeating the name. Vitani started to relax and walked a bit closer to him. "Do what you're here to do human, then leave." she said, studying him. He quietly gasped and pulled out his map and looked down at it. "Do you happen to know where Pride Rock is?" he asked Vitani, continuing to look at the map. She started to walk back a bit and continued to stare at him. "I don't know what you're talking about." He stared up at Vitani, trying to be patient. "I'm not hostile, nor are my squad mates." He slowly picked up his Thompson, Vitani got into a pouncing position in alarm. "I told you I am not hostile, Vitani." He took the stick magazine out of his SMG and set it on the ground followed by the Thompson itself . The lioness looked confused as she saw the Private unload his firearm. Charles pulled out his Colt and took the magazine out and set both of them next to the Thompson. Continuing to stare at Vitani, he removed the grenades on his belt, along with his knife, and also, set them on the ground. Vitani stood there amazed at what he was carrying. "Wow, you humans carry a lot of weapons." she quietly chuckled, hoping Charles wouldn't notice. He was curious of why this lioness, who could easily tear him apart, was acting so much like a new friend to him. Vitani gave a deep sigh. "I live there." she said in a cooled voice. He jumped off of the rock in disbelief. "You live there!?" he hurriedly asked her. "_I just get here and I already have a guide? I'm must be lucky today_." "Ya, we can find your friends and I will take you to Pride Rock." Charles wanted to smile, but told himself not to. "Thank you, Vitani." he said to her. He leaned down and picked up his Thompson and loaded a fresh clip into it and pulled the bolt. He picked up his 1911 Colt .45 and loaded a new clip into the magazine compartment, while sheathing his knife and clipping the grenades to his belt. He looked back at the lioness and nodded his head in appreciation, "I'm really grateful for your help."

"Well ain't that just cute?" said a voice from the shadows of the canyon, laughing tauntingly. Charles quickly turned around and aimed his firearm. "Who's there!?" he yelled in anger. Vitani growled, ready to fight. The Private noticed shadows, of what looked like dogs to him, show along the skeletons and rocks. Before either of them knew what happened, he was pinned on the ground by another being. "_A GERMAN_!?" he thought when he looked up at his attacker. A German SS officer had him pinned to the ground with a rifle bayonet in his shoulder. He tried to suck in the pain while he drew blood from the wound, but to no avail. Wincing in pain, he looked to his left to see Vitani surrounded by hyena's and noticed one behind her about to bite her neck. The German pulled out his knife and smiled. "Die American!" he yelled in english. In that one moment, Charles felt as if he was seeing the world slowing down all around him. He had his free hand on the grip of his Colt .45 as he looked at the German, then at Vitani, then back to the German. "No thanks, bastard!" he yelled and pulled the pistol out and shot the hyena behind Vitani in the neck. The SS officer, in confusion, was unable to bring the knife down on Private Shelton as the American soldier grabbed the German's wrist and, in a fast movement, forced the knife to slash the German's throat. The ground was covered in the Nazi's blood even while he was holding his throat with his hand. While his enemy was subdued with his wound, Charles violently pulled the Kar 98 rifle's bayonet out of his shoulder as he stood up and aimed the rifle down on the SS officer's head. He looked at his own gash and placed his hand over it, trying to stop the blood flow. Charles laid his hand back on the rifle and continued to aim at the soldier. The man yelled out in German and pulled out his Luger and fired, and, at the same time, Shelton stabbed the Nazi soldier in the chest, just underneath the heart, with the bayonet of the rifle. He stiffened up as the bullet entered his body, trying to maintain conciseness. He looked down at the German as the soldier was holding the body of the rifle. Charles pushed the bayonet deeper into the Nazi officer to the point where the blade was sticking out of his back. Charles looked over at the terrified hyena's and then at Vitani and back at the German soldier, and gave a humanly growl. "When you get to Hell, tell the Devil that Charles Shelton of the 101st Airborne sent you!" he yelled one last time as he, with the bayonet still in the soldier's chest, fired the rifle into the SS officer's heart.

Trying to stand in place, Charles looked over at the hyena's and scoffed at them. "Vitani, get behind me." said the soldier weakly, continuing to lose blood. She, in a hurry, ran up and got behind him as she examined his wounds. He grabbed the butt of the rifle, still stuck in the dead German's chest, and pulled it out like a sword in soil and aimed at the scavengers. "Who's next?" he weakly taunted, almost waiting for death to come. What came next was the most dramatic rescue to his memory, bullets rang down from the top of the cliffs onto the ground near the unsuspecting hyena's. As the hyena's fled, Charles looked up and on the cliffs was Vickers, Jackson, O'Brian, and Peterson, waving down at him with their weapons, smiling. The squad yelled in victory, weapons raised high, and fired off a few rounds. It was Private Shelton's first taste of real combat and he had the scars to prove he survived. In that time of victory, Charles lost his vision and all went dark in his mind.


	5. Awakenings

Chapter 5

Awakenings

"Come on, son. Wake up!" said a strange but familiar voice. Charles was in a room of bright, white, light, looking around but unable to open his eyes. "D-Dad?" Charles stuttered in an eager voice. Shelton couldn't open his eyes, for it gave him pain, but he continued to try. "Why do my eyes hurt?". The voice gave a long pause but then gave a friendly chuckle, "You can't see the truth son." Charles became confused at the answer. "Truth? What truth?" he asked the voice of his father. "Where are you dad? Why didn't you come back?" His father laughed, "Sorry buddy, but you need to figure out all of those answers for yourself. Now you need to get up kid and talk to your friends and sweetheart." He laughed again. Charles grew irritated by his father and asked him, "Sweetheart!?" "See ya son!" Charles stopped and stared into the direction of his father's voice. "Dad no!" He reached out as his body felt weaker and weaker and yelled in one last attempt. "DAD!!!" and his vision went dark in a flash.

Charles woke up in a rush and looked around the room filled with curious lionesses and his squad surrounding his rock bed. "Hey! He's alive!" yelled Peterson in joy. Charles looked at Peterson and gave him a curious look, "Was I dead?" Everyone started to laugh quietly. "No you weren't so get a grip on yourself. You were tossing and turning, muttering to yourself about your father." In alarm, Charles looked at the lionesses in the den and then at Corporal Vickers, "Where are we?" Vickers looked at him with a cooled expression and gave a small grin, "Welcome to Pride Rock, Private!" Charles sat up in urgency and looked at Jackson, "Have we set up communications with HQ!?" he yelled. Jackson looked at him and backed up a bit, "Relax! We tried!" Charles gave an aggravated look at the whole team and back at Private Jackson, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN "TRIED"!?" Charles yelled, demanding an answer. The cubs in the den nuzzled against their mother's legs in slight fear. "Nice to see you too Charles." replied Jackson, hoping that Shelton would let up on him. Vickers gripped his hand on Charles's healthy shoulder, "Relax Private! Thats an order!" Shelton turned around and stared at his commanding officer and said quietly, "...Yes sir." He slowly laid back down on the rock and closed his eyes. "What happened?" he asked to nobody in particular. "Lets see...Pounced by a Kraut, stabbed with a bayonet by a Kraut, you shot a hyena and grabbed the knife of the Kraut, slashed the throat of the Kraut, got shot by the Kraut, stabbed the Kraut, shot the Kraut, went all "tough guy" to the hyena's, we save your ass, you fall down. End of story." O'Brian laughed to himself, "What about the lady?" The squad looked around, except Charles, who looked at Vickers, "Where is Vitani?" he asked in worry. "Vitani is alright, a few wounds, but minor." said a strong, slightly light voice. Vickers looked down at the Private and smiled, "Charles, this is King Simba, ruler of the Pridelands." A large lion moved his way through the crowd of lionesses and stood in front of the rock. "Just Simba please." he laughed, as two lionesses and a younger lion stood next to him. The oldest lioness, who stood right next to Simba, smiled at Charles, "My name is Nala, queen of the Pridelands. Just Nala though." she chuckled a bit as the youngest lioness stood next to Nala and looked at Shelton curiously, "Im Kiara, and I'm curious about who you are." she gave her head a small lean and gave a small smile. Charles looked at the lion family and saluted, "Private First Class Charles Shelton, 101st Airborne Division of the United States Military, now a member of Easy Company after transfer from Baker Company!" Peterson looked at him in surprise, "Easy Company?" Charles looked at Peterson and nodded. "For Basic, I was part of Easy, I just never fought with them officially." He looked back at the royal family and stared at the young lion standing closely to Kiara. "What's your name sir?" he asked, trying to be polite. "None of your business." said the lion, annoyed by Charles. Kiara looked at the lion and frowned, "Kovu, what is with you today?" Kiara looked at Shelton and gave a small smile, "Sorry about Kovu, he has been grouchy today." The room was filled with laughter as Kovu walked outside, out of view. Charles stood up, picked up his shirt and jacket, and put them on, trying to avoid the pain from his shoulder and chest wounds.

Private Shelton was cleaning out his Thompson while Vickers was explaining the current situation to him while he was in his "absence". " So you're saying that we have radio communications but none at the same time? That makes no Goddamn sense!" Charles commented to Vickers in irritation. Vickers sat down on a rock and started to clean his M1 Garand, "Ya that's right, but we heard Germans over the radio instead." Charles looked up in surprise, "So that must mean that there are Germans near us, disrupting our comm." Vickers looked up at Charles and then at his Thompson. "If you are a Private, why do you have a Thompson? It's for CO's mostly." he asked. "Because in Basic, I specialized in sub and normal machine firearms, and Major General Lewis suggested me for the Thompson." O'Brian wadded out of the water and sat down next to his gear and picked up his BAR. Both Vickers and Shelton stared at the Browning Automatic Rifle with mouths slightly opened. "What is wrong with you both? It's just a weapon." exclaimed Simon as he started to take apart the rifle and clean the gearboxes. "It's more then just a weapon, it's a kickass weapon!" said Vickers in jealousy. Simon shook his head slightly and continued to clean his rifle. "_Yanks_." he thought to himself and laughed. Charles started to put his SMG back together as he talked, "Tonight, we have to brief the whole squad on our next action against the Germans. We cannot kill any hyena's this time, for we are here to fight the Germans, not local animals, even if they are working for the Nazi's. Tomorrow morning, we move out and find this Kraut CP and eliminate it, set up communications, and fall back here to Pride Rock." Vickers started to put his rifle back together as well, "We have a way to find out where it is." O'Brian pulled the bolt of his BAR and smiled. "After you passed out, we took a POW, a hyena who probably knows where the Germans are." Vickers continued as he pulled the bolt on his M1. Charles looked at both Vickers and Simon and down at his Thompson, "Well then, lets get started." said Charles as he pulled the Thompsons bolt and slung it on his back and headed back to Pride Rock.


	6. We're Just Friends

Chapter 6

"We're Just Friends"

Later that day, everyone, including the soldiers, sat down in the large den of Pride Rock, socializing about the day. Simon and Jackson were playing pin-up card games, as usual, and Vickers and Peterson were talking about Superman. "No way Vick! Superman can't die!" laughed Peterson as Vickers gave a chuckle. "Everyone has a weakness, including Superman, Peterson. It's logic, kid." said Vickers in a childish tone. Jackson turned around and looked at Vickers, "Oh come on Vick, logic sucks!" The squad burst into laughter. Peterson looked around the den of lionesses and back at Vickers, "Where is Private Shelton?" he said. "Probably in our den, I will go get him." said O'Brian as he walked outside and disappeared.

Charles was sitting on a rock and looking out at the plains, sharpening his knife. "_This damn heat_." he thought as he removed his helmet and gear and set it all down next to the rock. "How are those wounds." a voice said behind the Private. He continued to stare out at the Savanna, not wanting to look back. "They're fine, thanks for your worry." he said, continuing to look forward. Vitani walked up next to the rock and laid down across from him. "What are you doing out here?" she asked him. Charles looked at her and back at his knife, "Sharpening this." He continued to sharpen the weapon, not looking up at the lioness. "Why are you being so nice to me? I didn't really do much for this." Vitani sat up and stared at him. "I just think that you're a good human and think that you have good heart." Vitani said, confused for the question. Shelton stopped and looked at her and sighed. "...I have no heart. I'm paid to fight and kill for a war that I feel has no purpose. You wouldn't understand so don't even try." He sat up and started to walk away but stopped and looked back at Vitani. "I'm very sorry for all of that, I'm just stressed a bit." Vitani smiled and nodded. "It's ok." Charles looked at the rock and sighed deep. "Almost forgot my knife." He walked over to the rock and picked it up. Vitani looked at the knife. "Is that precious to you or something?" she asked. Charles stared at the knife and then at her. "It belonged to my father. He gave it to me for my thirteenth birthday as a present. I never go anywhere without it." Charles sheathed the knife and nodded his head to Vitani. "Sir! It's supper!" yelled O'Brian behind Charles. Shelton turned around and gave him a thumbs up and started to walk up to his squad mate. Vitani just stood there and laid down. Charles turned around, "Aren't you coming Vitani?" he yelled. She looked up at the two of them and smiled. "I'll be in there later." Charles gave a small wave and turned around and started walking. Simon followed his ally. "So how was your conversation with your girlfriend?" he said laughing. Charles stopped and turned around, eyeing the commando. "We're just friends." said Charles. Shelton turned around and continued to walk.


	7. Wartime Bonding

Chapter 7

Wartime Bonding

Charles and O'Brian entered the den and sat down with the squad. Everyone was already eating the catch of the day. "_Zebra_?" Charles thought as he saw Peterson eat his food. Vickers looked at Shelton and smiled, "Where did you find him, Simon?" he asked O'Brian. Simon shifted his head and looked at Charles and grinned, "He was talking to Vitani again." he answered and faced Vickers and then the rest of the squad. They quietly chuckled to themselves as Charles grew furious. "She is not my girlfriend!" he yelled. The lionesses looked at him, as did the royal family. Charles looked at all of them and back at his squad and sat down again. Peterson laid his hand on Sheltons shoulder, still laughing. "Jesus man, take a joke." Jackson looked at Peterson and laughed for a second. "So back to the subject, you're from where again, hotshot?" he said. Peterson looked at Jackson and took his hand off of Charles's shoulder. "North Carolina." Vickers looked at Peterson, "My wife is from there!" he laughed. Charles looked at Vickers and then at Peterson, "Did I miss something?" he asked them. "These two guys were talking about where they were sent for boot, till Vick here asked me where I'm from, and it all started from there." said Jackson smiling and laughing. Charles looked at him and gave a small laugh. "And so where ARE you from?" Charles asked. Jackson turned to the side and spit and back to Charles, "Brooklyn, New York, baby!" he said in a joking way. Simon laughed as the rest of them looked at him. "Why are you laughing Brit, where are you from?" Jackson joked. "London, England, Yank." he said calmly, wanting to get some kind of response from Jackson. Jackson laughed a bit harder, "A Londoner eh? I like this guy!" Charles looked at Vickers, "What about you, sir?" he asked cooly. "New Jersey, Shelton." Jackson leaned back, laughing. "So your a gardener?" Jackson asked, laughing his lungs out. Vickers stared at him and grinned, "Gun shop owner, but close." Jackson eased his laughter and laid down on his back. Peterson looked at Charles, "Where are you from?" he asked in a friendly tone of voice. Charles looked at them all. "Washington. Tacoma, Washington." he quietly said. Jackson looked at him and chuckled, "Tacoma, eh?". Charles nodded, "Better then living in the Bronx, Jack." he said. Vickers looked at them both and laughed, "Then why did you join the Military?" he asked. Charles looked at Vickers and then down at the ground, "My father was in the Army. He fought in World War One against the Germans in the trenches. When I was born, my mother became ill and died when I was only ten," The squad and some lionesses huddled around the Private, hearing the story. "My father would leave sometimes on small patrols and things, but a month before Pearl Harbor, my father went P.O.W," Charles took out his knife and looked at it. "I joined the Airborne so that I could take my revenge on the Germans for my country and my father. I believe that he is alive, and I will do anything to see him again." Charles gripped his knife firmer and sheathed it. They all stared at him, some of them tearing. Charles grabbed a piece of zebra and started to devour it as the pride watched him.

Later that night, the squad was in their den laying on the ground. Simon was reading a book as Vickers, Jackson, and Peterson were playing poker with their cigarettes. Charles was staring up at the ceiling of the den, thinking to himself. The three started to whispered and Vickers gently threw a rock at Shelton. "Come and play, Shelt!" said Jackson, lighting up his cigarette. Charles slowly sat up and looked at them. "Is O'Brian the only normal one here?" he said pointing at Simon as he read his book. They looked at him and back at Charles, "YES!" they all yelled at the same time and started to laugh. Charles covered his face and looked at Vickers, "Is our hyena P.O.W at least secure?" Vickers laughed, "Ya he is, now stop worrying." he said as he lit his cigarette. "_How can I not worry when I have knowledge that my team is going to be dead before we even see any real action_." he thought, getting up and walked to the entrance of their den. "Where are you going?" asked Peterson. Charles turned his head slightly, "I'm going to go exercise, be back in a few hours." Charles said as he walked outside into the night.


	8. The King and I

**Chapter 8**

**The King and I**

_**In war, truth is the first casualty. ~Aeschylus**_

**May 25th, 1944, 2141 hours (09:41 p.m)  
**

Charles had been walking for an hour and a half now, hoping that the night breeze would clear his mind full of troubles. He looked west of him and spotted the water hole and started to walk over to it. When he reached the pool of water, he sat down in the grass and laid down on his back, staring up at the stars. "You should be in your den, what are you doing out here?" said a voice behind Charles. Shelton sat up and turned his body around to see who it was. Before him stood Simba, grinning. "I was...uhhhh...taking a walk, your highness." he said. Simba chuckled and stared off into the stars. Charles followed the kings example and looked up at them too. "Have you ever wondered what is up there?" asked Simba, continuing to look up. Charles was a bit confused by what Simba meant. "Well, there are many human ideas, like religion and stuff." answered the Private. Simba looked at Charles. "Religion?" he asked. "Religion is an idea of belief, like Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, things like that. For example, Christians believe that God is up there in Heaven." Charles said and looked at Simba. The king nodded his head and looked back up. "My father told me something like that. He said that the great kings of the past watch over us from up there." Puzzled by the statement, he eyed the king and back up at the dark sky. "Personally, I don't believe in religion." he said. He closed his eyes. Since signing up for the military, he lost his beliefs thinking that it would not help him at all. He relied on his Thompson and his squad to stay alive. Simba looked over at the soldier. "You know what I have noticed about you?" Charles opened his eyes and looked at the lion, "I have never seen you smile, not even a little bit." Simba finished. Charles did not answer. It was true that he hasn't smiled for a long time, ever since his father never came home. That was three years ago. He decided to answer, "I haven't had a reason to."

**May 25th, 1944, 2334 hours (11:34 p.m)**

It has been two hours since the two started talking and then started to walk back to Pride Rock. Charles was starting to enjoy talking to the king, until Simba got more into the subject of his personal life, which is something he never likes to talk about, almost like a man running from his past. They reached the entrance to Simba den before they stopped. "Hey Private?" he said. Charles stood at attention like he did for his CO's. "Sir?" Simba smiled at him and gave a small chuckle. "I just wanted to ask you if you and your men wish to join me and my hunting party tomorrow, show us how humans hunt." Charles got a flashback to when he was fourteen with his father going on their first Father/Son hunting trip. He remembered the first kill he had, a young male deer. After seeing what he did to an innocent animal, he never wanted to hunt again. _Is war really different_?, he thought. He finally said, "Yes sir, that would be good for me and the men, sir." Simba nodded and walked into the den and looked back at the human. "We go at dawn, so get some sleep." he quietly said, trying not to wake any of the other lionesses. Charles saluted Simba and walked out of sight. Charles started to walk around to the back of Pride Rock to where his den was, until he heard a rustle in the bushes. In alert, he reached for his weapon, but it wasn't with him. He remembered that he left it in the den, along with his knife. He looked to the direction of the noise. "Hello!?" he asked, standing his ground. A figure started to come out of the bush. Charles was shocked but ready to fight. The figure came into view, it was a blood covered hyena, limping up to him until she collapsed onto the ground in front of him. He kneeled down next to her, examining her wounds. She was dead almost as if before she fell down. He noticed that she was peppered by bullet wounds. He moved his fingers around one of the holes and pulled a bullet out. His hands covered in blood, he looked at the bullet. _This isn't a hunting rifle. This was from an MP40..._he thought in amazement. The hyena's were helping the German that he killed, so why would the Germans kill their own militia? He pondered the question until he made it to his den. Everyone was still awake, doing the same things they were doing before he left, O'Brian was still reading, Jackson, Peterson, and Vickers were still playing cards and smoking. "Guys, I need to tell you all something."


	9. The Hunt Begins

**Chapter 9**

**The Hunt Begins**

**_"Older men declare war. But it is the youth that must fight and die." ~Herbert Hoover_**

**_May 26th, 1944, 0559 hours (05:59 a.m)_**

It was the first day of a new lifestyle for the men. Charles was the first to awaken from his sleep. He looked around the silent den noticing that nobody else was awake. He looked down at his watch. "_0559_?" he thought to himself. Right near the spot for him. He remembered that they were supposed to be up by dawn. He stood up and looked outside the den. He saw before him the most beautiful sunrise he had ever seen in his life. "Dawn." he said quietly to himself. He walked into the middle of the room and cleared his throat, "MORTARS!!! GET DOWN!!!", he yelled loudly. Vickers fell off his rock while everyone scrambled out of their military issued blankets. Charles tried to refrain from smiling so he put his hand over his face so nobody would get the hint of a laugh or smile. "Sorry, you guys were a bit late." Jackson stared at him chuckling a little before saying, "Your an asshole." The rest of the squad began to laugh, all except Private Shelton. Charles walked over to his spot and picked up his Thompson and loaded a fresh clip into it. He looked over at the rest of his 'friends'. "Guys, grab your gear. Simba is having us join him and his hunting party for a hunt." he said, trying to be serious after the jokes. O'Brian whispered to Peterson, "Thats why they call it a hunting party." They both giggled to themselves. Charles started to get annoyed from his squads dilly dallying. "I gave you two an order." he said. Peterson and Simon stood upright and walked to their spots. Jackson walked up to Charles, M1 rifle in hand. "I thought Vick was our CO, 'sir'?" Shelton felt anger grow inside him. "I'm second in command here, so you follow MY orders too." Jackson nodded and walked out of the den and looked back. "I'll be waiting out here till you slowpokes are ready." He looked away and walked out of sight. A colored bird flew into the den and landed on Vickers's rock bed. "Hello, my name is Zazu and I came to inform you all that the king is waiting in the front of his den for you." said the hornbill. Vickers loaded his rifle and slung it over his shoulder and looked at Zazu. "Tell him that we will be there in a few minutes." Vickers said to him. Zazu nodded and flew out of the room. A few minutes later the men started to walk around Pride Rock to meet up with Simba. Everyone was excited to have some fun and to prove themselves as hunters. Charles was walking in front of the group, as usual. Jackson pulled a piece of gum out of his chest pack and started to chew on it. "So sir, you think that you and that Vitani girl could, you know?" Charles stopped and stood, continuing to stare in his faced direction. "Get together?" Jackson finished. Charles, in anger, pulled the bolt of his weapon and looked back at the Private. "Am I the only rational guy in this squad!? I'm a human! She's a lioness! IT CAN'T WORK!!" He yelled in fury. The other soldiers stepped back a few steps. Charles knew that they didn't like him, but he felt something else that he could see in their eyes, he could see fear. Jackson continued to stand in his original stance, slightly confused about his anger. "Jesus man, I only asked a question." he said, trying not to further upset Shelton. Charles continued to stare at Jackson with, what some people would tell, eyes of death and quietly said, "I am not in love with her, and she is not in love with me. Get over it!" He turned around and started to walk again while everyone followed. When the squad went around the side of the giant rock structure, they could see Simba and other lionesses that they could not identify. They also noticed another young male that they could identify as prince Kovu. They walked up to the group surprised at who was in the party. The hunting party compiled of Kiara, Kovu, Vitani, Nala, and Simba. "Wow, so we're hunting with the royal family?" said Peterson in amazement.

_**May 26th, 1944, 0632 hours (06:32 a.m)**_

It has been an hour since the group left Pride Rock in search of prey, but with no luck. "_I've been working on the railroad, all the livelong day_!" sang the men in good heart, all except Charles, who kept to himself the entire time, ever cautious of the road ahead. "_What have they got to sing about_?" he thought, wishing that they would stop. He began to hear Kiara sing, muttering the parts she didn't know, than Nala started to sing, than Simba. The song now was like a Saturday night orchestra at his local opera theater that his mother used to take him to. He knew that Kovu and Vitani were not singing though which made him question. Vitani walked up next to Charles and looked at him as he continued to stare in his general direction. Charles didn't want to look at the lioness, thinking that the rest of the group would start to think that he liked her. "Hey Charlie?" she said, hoping to get his attention. After hearing his kid name, he looked at Vitani, wondering how she got that name. "What is it?" he asked. "Kovu has a question." Vitani finished as Kovu walked up on his other side. "_Here we go_." Charles thought. Usually Kovu would ask him something to mock him. He knew that Kovu hated him and his squad and did not trust them at all. "So Mr. Soldier, how many battles have you been?" Charles looked at Kovu and then back at the path. "Too many to count." he said. The men stopped singing along with Kiara, Nala, and Simba, "We thought you just graduated Basic though!" exclaimed Simon. Charles kept walking, not looking back at anyone. "I was in the Pacific before I was transferred to England, I was suggested to be in the Airborne by my Lieutenant." he explained. Kiara looked at her father, "What is he talking about?" she asked. Charles looked back at her and nodded, "Another time, princess." he said. He heard noises from a ridge ahead and faced forward and rose his weapon. He rose his hand and kneeled down, weapon aimed. The rest of the men kneeled, following the order. The royal family was confused by what the humans were doing. Vickers whispered to Simba, "Get down and keep still." Simba listened and laid down, as did his family. Vitani and Kovu did the same as Charles crouch-walked his way to the ridge and looked down onto the plains below. He lowered his Thompson and looked down at a herd of antelope, marveling the beauty of life while at the same time, focusing on the task at hand, to hunt and feast. "_The hunt begins_." he thought.


	10. Surprises Around Every Rock

**Chapter 10**

**Surprises Around Every Rock**

**_"The tragedy of war is that it uses man's best to do man's worst." ~Henry Fosdick_**

**_ May 26th, 1944, 1643 hours (04:43 p.m)_**

Charles had spent the last five minutes explaining the layout plan for the squad as the lion family sat there, confused but excited to see them in action. Shelton drew a small field map on the ground and pointed out the positions for the men, talking to them at the same time. "Vick," said Charles, "You, Jackson, and Simon take up an 'M' shape on the northern side of the field. Me and Peterson will take up opposition on the southern section. Clear?" he finished. The soldiers looked at each other and looked at their friend, "Clear." said Vickers. The rest of them called clear quietly, eager to get down to business. Charles looked at his allies and then at the lions and nodded. "Enjoy the show." he said quietly. He looked back at the dirt map and up at the squad, "I want single shot on all weapons and all of you can only fire one round each, so no automatic fire, as in," he looked at Jackson and O'Brian, "no full-auto BAR or Thompson. Got it? We don't want to exceed the kill limit." They all nodded. The hunting party looked down onto the plains overlooking a herd of thirteen antelope. The soldiers started to set their weapons to semi-auto, all except Jackson, who set his M1A1 Thompson back to full auto. "_Screw this!_" Jackson thought in annoyance. In a split second, Jackson started to run down the hill, firing his Thompson like a crazed soldier running into gunfire. "JACKSON!! HOLD YOUR FIRE NOW!!!" yelled Vickers. It was too late for Jackson, he had already taken down over half the herd. Bodies fell riddled with bullets and blood covered the ground. Charles had never seen anything like it, it wasn't a hunt, it was a massacre. "JACKSON!! GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE NOW, DAMN IT!!" Vickers continued to scream. Charles couldn't stand seeing the sight anymore, so he started to run after Jackson. "PRIVATE! GET BACK HERE! SHELTON!!" yelled Vickers. Charles caught up to Jackson and tackled him to the ground, trying to keep him still. "GET OFF ME!!" ordered Jackson in anger. The rest of the hunting party made it down the hill and circled around the two men, confused and afraid to get in the way. Charles gathered all of his anger and hate and punched Jackson square in the face, grabbing him by his uniforms collar. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?" screamed Charles. Private Jackson started to bleed heavily from his nose and a little from his mouth, dazed from the powerful punch. Charles punched him again, this time with less force. Peterson tried to restrain Charles, but he was shoved away by the enraged soldier. "YOU THINK IT'S FUN TO KILL INNOCENTS!?" He hit the now weak Jackson again, "HUH, YOU SELFISH BASTARD!?" Charles got off of Jackson and pulled out his Colt .45 and cocked it. "Charlie! Don't do it!" yelled Nala. Charles looked at her, infatuated with anger. He hated it when people called him that, which grew his anger. He looked back down at Jackson and aimed the pistol at his forehead. Simon was shocked by this, seeing his allies fight. "Charles! Lower the damn gun!" he said, hoping that he would, but Charles didn't. Vickers tried to get close to the two, until Charles gave him a 'death glare' and stepped back, "Stand down, Private!" he ordered, but to no avail. Kiara snuck up behind Charles and placed her paw on top of the gun, trying to push it down. "Please, put it away Charles." she said quietly. What came next was never expected by any of the squad or the royal family, but Charles, for the first time in years, he drew tears. Vitani walked up next to him and started to help Kiara push the gun down. His vision flashed, but he wasn't in the Pride Lands anymore, he was in a village. He looked up and saw the flag of Japan on a large stick above a shelled hut. Charles looked left of himself and saw a brutal sight, he saw many bodies of the villagers surrounded by their own blood. They were all headless. He felt sick to his stomach at the sight, but the horror wasn't over, for he saw a Japanese officer with his katana raised over the neck of a blindfolded Marine. His hands were bound behind his back and was kneeling next to the Japanese soldier. He looked at the Marines jacket and slightly opened his mouth in shock, the jacket read, "PFC. Shelton" The officer looked over at Charles and smiled evilly and brought his katana down on the Marines neck. In a flash, he was back to his original state, his pistol aimed at a bloodied Jackson with Vitani and Kiaras' paws on the Colt, trying to push it down. Charles, by his own free will, lowered his pistol and slowly holstered it, tears still sliding down his face.

**_May 26th, 1944, 1706 hours (05:06 p.m)_**

Later that day, Jackson was sent to Rafikis' tree due to heavy blood loss, while Charles was in the den with the rest of the lionesses, but he ate to himself the entire time. The rest of the squad was eating with some of the lionesses from Nala's own hunting party, talking about the ordeal that occurred earlier that day. "Really? He almost killed one of his own?" one lioness asked. Peterson still tried to cook his food to eat, "It wouldn't be the first time," he stated, "It's said that he killed one of his own squad mates at Guadalcanal." Peterson finished cooking his meat and started to eat slowly. "Whoa!" exclaimed O'Brian, "He shot one of his own blokes?" Some of the lionesses outside the group gathered around the humans, wishing to hear the tale. Vickers decided to join the conversation with his own evidence. "Well 'supposedly' the Private was drunk in the middle of a fire-fight and refused to follow his orders." Simon looked at Peterson and Vickers in awe from the story, "There is a story like that in Normandy of a Lieutenant chap named Spiers where he killed one of his Sergeants who refused to go on patrol because he was heavily smashed." he explained to them all. Peterson and Vickers looked at each other amazed by the similar story. Charles stood up and started to walk to the entrance of the den but stopped and looked back at the lionesses as they all stared at him, keeping quiet. "War is hell." he quietly said as if to nobody and walked out of the den. Once he left, the room was filled with talk again. He walked around the side of Pride Rock, getting closer to his squads' den, when he heard a familiar voice from behind him. "Where are you going?" said the voice. Charles continued to walk for a few feet until he stopped, not looking back to see who it was. "Leave me alone Vitani." he said, not looking back. Vitani walked up next to him, but he looked away from her. "Did I do something Charlie?" she asked. "Please stop calling me that Tani." he said, still looking away from her. Vitani looked hurt from his words. "I'm sorry, I wont anymore." she said. She looked down at the ground and Charles looked at her. "Why are you so nice to me? Everyone says that you aren't this nice to anyone else, so why me?" Vitani continued to look down at the ground. "You saved my life." she quietly said. Charles thought that it was for another reason, "Do you like me?" he asked the lioness. Vitani didn't know how to respond. "What do you mean?" she asked. Shelton started to grow impatient, thinking that she knew what he was talking about. "Are you in love with me?" He asked differently. Vitani looked up after hearing the question. "I..." she paused. She didn't know how to answer such a forward question like that. "Because I'm not in love with you, so if you do like me, find someone else, because I'm a human," he said. Vitani looked at him, the moonlight glistening in her blue eyes, wishing to say something but was cut off by his finish. "and your a lioness." Charles finished. He slowly turned around and walked away, leaving Vitani in her worry.

**_May 26th, 1944, 1754 hours (05:54 p.m)_**

He finally reached the den and grabbed his Thompson. He looked at a rock and on it was a picture of Charles, Vickers, Jackson, Peterson, and O'Brian in front of the C-47 they flew in on. "_Well there goes my only friends_." he thought. He was afraid of how Jackson would think of him once he got out of Rafikis' care. Jackson was always a good guy, and most of the time, a joker, but a good friend of Charles. He continued to stare at the picture for a few minutes. "What's wrong with me?" he said in a whisper before he walked out of the den and started to walk towards the direction of the Elephant Graveyard.

**_May 26th, 1944, 1912 hours (07:12 p.m)_**

It felt like an eternity of walking for Charles as he got closer and closer towards the canyons that cleared the way to the Elephant Graveyard. He was thinking back to how he treated Vitani back at Pride Rock. "_Did I have to be a jackass to her?_" he thought as he got to the canyon entrance. He noticed from a distance that there were little caves in the rock sidings of the canyon. As he went further into the canyon, he started to hear voices from the caves. He slowly grabbed a magazine from one of his leg pouches and slipped the stick clip into his Thompson and quietly walked towards the mouth of one of the hundred caves . "Hello?" he said, Thompson ready in hand. He heard little voices that sounded like injured dogs and lit a match. Inside was a hyena mother and two pups in which one of them was missing a leg. "Wh..Who are you?" stuttered the mother, who was obviously afraid of the human stranger. Charles set his Thompson onto the ground and slowly kneeled down, "Private Charles Shelton, 101'st Airborne." he said. He looked at the pup with the missing leg, "What happened?" he quietly asked, directing the question to the mother. The mother hyena nuzzled her child, "The humans in grey skin betrayed us. They killed half of us already, and they took my sons leg off with some kind of explosive device from underground." Charles became appalled by the story, continuing to look at the pup. "He must have tripped on a mine." he said and gently pet the hyenas son. He looked at the adult hyena, "What do you mean 'half' of us?" The hyena rose a weak paw and pointed outside the cave. Charles turned around and his eyes widened. "_How could the Nazis' be so cruel?_" he thought as he looked at the sight before him.


	11. Day of a King

**Chapter 11**

**Day of a King**

**_"Only the dead have seen the end of war." ~Plato_**

_**May 27th, 1944, 1143 hours (11:43 a.m):**_

The next day, Simba was making his daily rounds around his kingdom, while at the same time, looking for the now-missing Charles Shelton, "_I hope he didn't go for a walk and got lost last night_." thought the king as he made his way towards the watering hole. He set himself down under a tree next to the large pool of water and noticed Vickers laying down on his back looking up at the sky, until a sudden splash of water landed on the human's face. Simba followed the direction of the water and saw his mate Nala and his daughter Kiara laughing up a storm. "Come on! Jump in!" yelled Kiara. Vickers sat up and stared at the lioness's, both laughing and irritated. Simba gave a chuckle and started to walk down towards Vickers, "I hope my family isn't giving you a hard time." he said as he laid down next to the Ranger. Vickers gave a small jump after the sudden arrival of king, "No sir. I don't mind them splashing me." he answered in an instant. "I can see that." he said in amusement, staring from Vickers to his family and smiled. In the corner of the lion's eye, he saw Kovu, laying under a different tree, who has been paying his attention to Corporal Vickers the entire time he was there. Everyone knew that Kovu disliked the human soldiers and wanted them to leave soon, but he even knew himself that they were not going for a long time. The king took notice that Vickers was writing something on a thin, white sheet, in which he grew curious of his activity. "What are you doing, Vickers?" he asked the human, out of the growing curiosity. Vickers looked at the lion king and back at his sheet of paper and responded quietly while writing, "I'm writing a letter back home, that is if they would be able to send it from here." He gave a small laugh and continued to write. Simba started to slightly understand what his main point was, "Who is it for?" he asked. Vickers looked further down the parchment and closed his eyes and started to give a small tear, "It's to my little girl in New Jersey." he said. Simba felt sick after hearing Vickers explain, for he knew that Vickers could be killed in this war, leaving his daughter an orphan or living with relatives. Vickers looked at Kiara splashing Kovu and gave a smile, "She is turning four this month, so I hope to God that the damn Germans will surrender soon." Vickers gently grasped his cross on his necklace and started to mumble as if in prayer. Simba had never seen Vickers this way before, Vickers was the "old man" of the squad and so was wise and fun to talk to, but he was only twenty-two. The main problem with him as a soldier was that he couldn't command, so he left the orders to Charles. The king set his left paw on the soldier's shoulder and smiled, "Don't worry, you will be home soon, Vickers." he said, as if in a fatherly way. Vickers nodded and opened two of his pockets, one he set his letter in, and the other he set his pencil. Simba's paw left the comfort of Vickers's shoulder as Simba laid back down. "Do you know where Charles is? I can't find him." he asked. The Ranger continued to stare into the water, not looking at the king, "No I don't." he mumbled. Simba nodded to himself and stood back up and stretched. "Have a good time everyone!" he yelled to his family and Vickers, who didn't flinch a bit from the lion's departure as Simba started to walk in the direction of Pride Rock.

_**May 27th, 1944, 1307 hours (01:07 p.m):**_

It has been over an hour since Simba left the watering hole to return to Pride Rock, many of the lionesses have left for hunting, while the cubs were left with the rest of them, so Pride Rock was slightly empty at this time of day. Simba noticed that Zazu was asleep on a rock and chuckled, "_Well, I guess he deserved a break_." he thought to himself as he continued into the large, empty den. "We need to talk." said a mysterious but familiar voice. Simba jumped and turned around quickly to see a shadowed figure in the walls of the rocks, but the figure revealed themselves out to be Charles, jacket covered in blood, bandages in his pockets, also covered in blood. "Charles, you kinda scared me there for a second." said Simba, trying to be friendly. The Private didn't say anything, as he continued to stare at the lion. Simba noticed the blood all over his body and jumped back, "What happened!?" he exclaimed. Charles took a step forward, not rushing any response, "It's not what happened to me, it's what happened to _them_." he quietly stated. He reached into one of his blood soaked pockets and pulled out a handful of bloodied bullets, many of them dented and bent horribly, "These are what came from the bodies of the innocent in the Elephant Graveyard. THESE ARE WHAT CAME FROM THE NAZI WAR MACHINE!!" he yelled in anger as he threw the bullets onto the ground. Nala, Kiara, Kovu, and Vitani ran into the den, hearing the scream of anger from Charles, all of them shocked by the bloody bullets on the ground and the bloodied clothing and bandages. Charles looked back at them and then back at Simba. They could all see it in his dark green eyes pure hatred and anger, almost as if they looked into the human face of Hell, even Kovu backed away a few steps. Charles looked outside towards the Elephant Graveyard and back at the royal family and quietly said in the most calm voice he could muster at that point, "We have to help the Hyena's."

**Hey everyone! Spartansoldier2 here! I'm having trouble writing new chapters due to heavy ROTC here so I might not upload a lot but hopefully my ROTC military knowledge will assist in making this a better story. Also, I have decided to add the date and time (including military time) plus a quote for further chapters. Semper Fi!**

**-Spartansoldier2**


	12. Casualties of War

**Chapter 12**

**Casualties of War**

**_"War does not determine who is right - only who is left."_**

**_~Bertrand Russell_**

_**May 27th, 1944, 1417 hours (02:17 p.m):**_

Minutes ensued to hours as the two were thrown into an uncontrollable argument over the hyena 'problem'. Lioness after lioness gathered outside the entrance to the den, overhearing what has made their king and new friend so upset with each other. The men also made their way through the crowd of felines to the entrance, "What's going on here?" Vickers asked the lioness to his left. The lioness looked up at Vickers and gave a small smile, it was Kiara. "My dad and Charles are having an argument about the hyena's. They have been for over an hour." she said. Vickers looked back at Peterson and O'Brian and then back at the entrance. "Damn it, Charles! I'm gonna kick his ass!" Vickers said as he stormed into the den as Peterson and Simon followed. The lionesses were surprised by such a daring move from the men, for they knew what happened to Jackson by Charles's hands, so they remained where they were, hopeless to stop the soldiers.

_**May 27th, 1944, 1417 hours (02:17 p.m):**_

"All I'm asking, Simba, is that you just give them a place to stay, thats it!" yelled Charles, displeased with the lion's uncaring answers. Simba continued to walk in circles in front of the soldier, thinking. He finally stopped and looked at the young man, gritting his teeth. "And what? So that we can let our guard down so that they can attack? That's what they always try to do whenever we do one good deed for them!" he yelled in anger and frustration. Charles crossed his arms and closed his eyes. He started to think of what Nala said to him a few days ago, about the reign of Scar and the hyena's. "You have another reason, I believe." quietly Charles said. He opened his eyes and looked back up at the lion. He heard footsteps behind his back and looked around, and before him stood Vickers, Peterson, and O'Brian. "What are you guys doing here?" he asked the men. Before Vick could open his mouth, Charles looked away and back at Simba, who was also staring at the soldiers. "You cling to the past, like it's some kind of protective blanket, but what you need to realize is that this is the present!" Charles complained. Simba looked at him shocked by the remark, as did the soldiers. "I just-" Simba was cut off by Charles, with another attack, "Let me get this through your head! Those hyena's are NOT going to attack the Pridelands! If you want to be a good king, you need to let go of your past!" The men were all in awe and surprise by what their friend had said to the lion king. Simba drooped his head down to the ground after hearing this claim. Charles knew that he had won so he stepped back and saluted the defeated king. "If you won't help them, then I WILL!!" He turned around and started to leave but was blocked off by his own comrades. "Charles, you have gone too far!" said Peterson, who was directly in his way. "Really? You have never even slept with a girl!" He pushed the young soldier aside, bumping him into O'Brian and left the room, anger filled.

**Hey! Spartansoldier2 here! Sorry for such a short chapter, but I have been busy with JROTC, airsoft, and work at the skate shop so i dont have much time to type, plus I needed a little break after boot camp. If anybody wants to help with future chapters, just leave me a message, whether it would be chapter ideas or even beta reading, cause I'm writing this story for YOU, the readers. Thanks for taking your time reading this chapter and hope to update the next chapter soon. Semper Fi!**

**-Spartansoldier2**


	13. Fools and Sinners

**Chapter 13**

**Fools and Sinners**

**_"The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle!"_**

**_-General John J. Pershing_**

_**May 27th, 1944, 1423 hours (2:23 p.m):**_

The hot African sun was beating down on Charles's face as he approached Rafiki's tree in hopes of seeing Jackson. "Damn, it's hot Hell." he said as he removed his helmet and wiped the sweat running down his dirt-covered face. He suddenly heard a rustle in the tall grass a few feet from him and aimed his Thompson, ready to defend his life. "Who's there?" asked, but was given no answer, only a foul smell entered his nostrils. Charles covered his nose and mouth with his arm, trying not to smell the stench. "Simon! That better not have been what I think it was!" he cried out. He heard whispering, but all he could make out was: "You and your gas." Charles uncovered his mouth and nose and fired a round from his Thompson into the ground, giving a warning shot. A warthog and meerkat hopped out from the grass in front of him. The warthog started to kiss his boot as if he was Charles's slave, while the meerkat raised his arms over his head, "Don't kill us! Please!" cried them both at the same time. Charles couldn't believe what he was seeing, almost like an unusual friendship. He looked down at the warthog and moved his boot away and set his Thompson to 'safe' and shouldered it. "Get a grip! I'm not going to kill you." he said, trying to be as calm as he could to them. The meerkat was covering his face, afraid. "You're not?" he asked. He gave a deep breath and gave a pat to his friend and scoffed, "Told ya he wasn't!" he explained to the warthog. Charles remembered something about these two from a lioness back at Pride Rock. "You both must be Timon and Pumbaa." he said. The meerkat and the warthog looked at each other and then back at the soldier. Charles looked at the tree and then back at the two and nodded slightly. "Well, it was nice to meet you both but I must go." He told them and started walking towards the large tree. Timon and Pumbaa watched as he left them as they themselves started to leave into the grass.

_**May 27th, 1944, 1432 hours (02:32 p.m):**_

Charles tried to find a way into the tree for three minutes but with no solution. He heard a laugh from behind the tree itself and started to walk around the wide tree and saw on a rock bed, Private Jackson. He saw that to Jackson's right, was a lioness with little dots around her eyes, but she had a slightly dark gold coat. "_Reminds me of Vitani._" he thought as he walked towards the duo. Jackson looked at Charles and gave a smile, "Hey Charles!" he exclaimed. Charles was very surprised that he was friendly after what he did to Jackson. He had difficulty trying to find a response to this remark so all that came out was; "Hey." Jackson kisses the lioness on the cheek and motioned his hand, and the lioness left with a smile and disappeared. Charles was very confused by Jackson giving her a kiss, but looked down at his ally. "What was that about?" he asked, slightly pointing towards the direction of the lioness. Jackson followed his fingers direction, but saw nothing, so he looked back up at the man, "What was what about?" he asked innocently. Charles had a hint that something was going on, but he personally wanted to know if Jackson would admit anything. Jackson reached his hand down into his kit and pulled out his canteen and said, "I think you're losing it." before taking a drink out of it. Shelton crossed his arms and sighed deeply as he sat himself down next to the rock. "And you said that I had a thing going on with a lioness." he mocked as he removed his M1A1 Thompson and detached the clip. Jackson chuckled and sat up, hanging his legs over the rock edge, "Well you DO." he returned, taking another drink out of his canteen. Charles didn't reply and just shook his head, "Now what did I say about the laws of nature?" he asked the Private. Jackson leaned back and sighed, looking up at the blue sky. "You can live by that, I'll take any broad." he answered. "So, you basically are using her?" Charles asked. Jackson gently shook his head and smiled, "I think I'm in love with that lioness." Jackson replied. Charles looked up at the sprawled soldier amazed by his emotions. He personally expected more common sense from his partner, but at the same time, he didn't. He took a deep breath and rested himself along the side of the rock, thinking. "What's her name?" he calmly asked. Jackson sat up and cracked his neck, giving a small grunt, "Her name is Dotty." Jackson answered, returning to his lying state. The warm wind blew in Charles's face as he set his weapons onto the ground in front of him including his M1A1 Thompson, M1911 Colt.45, personal combat knife, and his grenades. Jackson looked down at the cache and scratched his chin. "Do you really need all of THAT right now? As if those Nazi Krauts are going to just pop up and shoot you dead." he remarked to Charles. Charles eyed Jackson and gave a nod, "Lei non sa mai." he quietly said. Jackson smiled and gave Charles a gentle friendly pat on the cheek. "I didn't know you could speak Italian!" the soldier exclaimed. "You understand Italian?" he cooly asked the man. Jackson just gave him a thumbs-up and smiled. Charles never knew anyone who could understand Italian because he came from the Northwest. Jackson picked up his own Thompson and examined it, "I'm from an Italian family that came from Sicily." Jackson said, but then started to look around, making sure nobody else was around. After observing his surroundings, he looked at Charles and whispered, "Can I tell you a secret?" he asked. Charles grew curious by the question. "_What kind of secret does this guy have?_" he thought. Charles nodded a 'yes' and stared at Jackson, ready to hear his 'secret'. "My father is..." Jackson gave a long pause, taking another look-around, "....in the Mafia." he finished. Charles was silent for a few seconds, he didn't know what to say about such an interesting secret. Before he had time to respond, Jackson arm reached to the other side of the rock and pulled up his equipment pack and unzipped its main pouch. What Jackson pulled out was a 1928 Thompson 'drum' magazine and a fore-grip. Charles was astounded by the components, and Jackson wasn't finished! He reached back in and pulled out the barrel assembly of the 1928 Thompson, sights, a 1928 receiver body, and a compensator. "Everything you need to make it a REAL Tommy Gun." he jokingly said. Charles couldn't take his eyes off the accessories. "Are you suggesting me to convert MY M1A1 Thompson...into a Chicago Typewriter!?" he exclaimed to Jackson, but was just returned with a smile and nod. Charles took the components and placed them in his own kit and zipped it up. Jackson placed his hand on Charles's shoulder and smiled, "Vick told me that you found some hyena's, eh?" he claimed. Charles looked down and gently shoved Jackson's hand off as he started to remember them, yelping in pain from the wounds, seeing the bodies of decaying dead before his feet. He gathered up his weapons and started to set off towards Pride Rock, until Jackson stopped him by voice, "He also told me that he will promote you to Sergeant next week!" Charles continued to stare at the giant rock 'home', not wishing to look at his ally. "I don't deserve it." he quietly said and pressed on forward, leaving one of his only friends in the breath of the wind.


	14. D Day

Chapter 14

D-Day

_**"Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind."**_

_**-John F. Kennedy**_

**June 5th, 1944, 2034 hours (08:34 p.m)**

Charles and his men have stayed in the company of Simba and his pride for more then an entire week, and in that entire week, not once did they fire another round from their weapons of war into the body of a Nazi, nor anybody out of the opposition. The men had started to get the hang of their new, yet unusual, lifestyle by doing what the other Pridelanders did every day; hunting, drinking and swimming at the water hole, socialize with the lionesses along with the royal family, and by far relaxing. Charles has still been his normal self by issuing orders to the men, still being questioned due to his rank as a Private, only to be ordered PT (Physical Training), but questions also rose from his own head about the mission and himself. Where is his father? What made the Germans take him prisoner? Why did the government send his men and him on this ridiculous assignment? He continuously pondered those questions without respite nor answer as the days passed. Charles himself tried to play along with what his men were doing throughout the day, but the questions swarmed his mind ever still, leaving him in dismay even further. Today was June fifth and also the day that the invasion of Normandy, France was giving its first strike at the Germans beyond the beaches. Tonight, the entire Airborne was being mobilized and dropped behind enemy lines into the French countryside. Charles, and particularly Peterson, wanted to be with them, but they were not given the chance. Charles was returning to Pride Rock from the Elephant Graveyard after checking up on the hyenas, in whom took liking to the young man for being so kind to them. He was walking a little bit faster then before, where he constantly carried around his Thompson Sub-Machine Gun due to his war-paranoid nature, but he has started to leave it back at the den as he started to loosen up his character, but not to the point where the men were, not carrying around at least their pistol, making fool's of themselves, dating lionesses. Charles remembered Jackson and Dotty at Rafiki's tree a week ago and criticized him about the science of biology and human standards, in which Charles still ridicules the men about. Charles was near the summit of the large rock structure when a harsh, old voice alarmed the young Airborne soldier: "Be ready for the storm, young one." it said. Charles quickly turned around to see another human, staring right into his his own eyes. "What?" the young Charles exclaimed in demand for a clearer answer. The man had black skin wearing what looked like high cerimonial robes of high standards. He carried with him a jewel coated knife and an elders staff. Charles also noticed that the man was bald with a eye red as blood and a cream white eye. The old man smiled and looked down at the ground with his eyes closed, as if the man gestured a bow. Charles didn't know what to make of the man, for he had never seen a colored man like this. He saw colored boys around his home but he himself was friends with one as a young boy, but this colored man was different, more of an elder tribesman. "I thank you for this time of great honor. For I ask for your help, great one." he stated like a man praising a god or emperor. Charles was quite confused by such a claim and scratched his dark-brown hair that was starting to grow again. He scratched his chin and motioned for the man to look back up at him. "Great one? I don't understand one damn bit." Charles calmly said, hoping very much that he didn't offend him. The man smiled again and nodded. "You have come to save our lands of course! You have come to save my people and this pride from the 'grey men'." Charles didn't understand what he meant by the 'grey men'. Nobody has ever told him of anything like this. The old man continued to talk, "I believe you did not come alone." he finished. Charles questioned what this man knew thinking that what he knew could be used against him and his men, jeopardizing their mission, even though he was starting to think that maybe they weren't on any mission. "Who are the 'grey men'?" he asked the colored man. The man started to become discouraged by this white boy's knowledge. The man pointed to his shoulder, "Their emblem on their shoulder depicts multiple lines crossing but it forms around like a circle." he explained to the dumbstruck soldier. Charles jerked a bit, remembering the symbol of the Nazi Party in Germany, knowing that officers have the symbol on their shoulder patches. "The Krauts? You are having problems with them?" he asked in surprise. The old man nodded calmly as if it was not a problem. A flash in Charles's vision started to show an old, Japanese man covered with blood and his eyes gouged out of his skull, and then he was back to staring into the eyes of the old man. Charles gave a small gasp and rubbed his eyes, hoping that it was something in his eyeballs. "I am a Chieftain of my once proud village just north of where we stand now, my friend. For I am of a great Zulu council recently formed to combat these savage men." the man said with pride in his strong voice. Charles couldn't believe that he just answered a question that he himself was going to ask. Shelton looked around, checking to see that they were alone to speak. Charles looked up at the star-filled, dark sky and back at the Zulu in worry and questioning. Since the Chieftain explained who he was, Charles felt that he must also introduce himself, but he also did not wish to tell this stranger about his companions or his mission. He especially did not want to endanger the pride if this man was really a spy for the Axis forces ordered to give all the info he could to report back. Then they would come to fight, they would come to kill. Charles gave a sigh and nodded, "My name is Private First Class Charles Shelton, 101st Airborne, Easy Company now Fox Company." he nervously said. The Chieftain honorably bowed to the young soldier and looked back up at him. Charles was expecting a reaction different from this, like running away or a threat or even try and kill him, but he was wrong. Charles was never himself treated like a savior to someone of his stature nor did he like it. Charles never thought of himself as a hero, in his point of view, heroes don't go to war to fight and kill. "If you would excuse my departure, I must leave for home. For it is very late for someone my age." The Zulu gave a friendly chuckle and smiled. "I must tuck my grandson into bed also, you know how children are nowadays, how they never sleep without help." Charles's vision flashed again and saw the lifeless body of a young boy, who had been riddled with bullets. Charles flinched a bit as his vision returned to normal as his mind became heavy with emotion. Charles gave a nod and turned towards the den in the rock wall, until he was stopped again with further conversation from the man. "Tomorrow, many will die filled with lead and blood, and it won't differ for you. Be ready for the storm." repeated the old man. Charles was shocked and quickly turned around to see that nobody was there. "What the hell?" he asked himself out loud as he started to walk backwards up the rocks till he turned forward and ran towards the den.

**June 6****th****, 1944,** **1142 hours (11:42 a.m)**

The next day arrived almost too soon for the young soldiers as they all ate up their breakfast. It wasn't a normal, relaxing day for them all, for they all knew of the sacrifice of the thousands of soldiers that should have landed on French soil by that time. O'Brian was still trying to fix their radio that took some damage from when they dropped, but so far, he has had no success. Jackson was talking to Peterson about what he knows about girls, while Vick was listening in on it. Charles couldn't eat so he started to clean out his Thompson that he modified with the parts that Jackson gave him a week before. His mind was still thinking back to the Zulu Chieftain last night, for which he never told anyone yet. He was afraid of what everyone would think about what he said about being 'ready for the storm'. "I got something!" Simon bursted as he ran into the den, with some of the Zebra still in his mouth. The men quickly sprang to their feet and ran outside to where the radio was sat down, with some of the lionesses following their lead. Peterson sat down next to the radio and started to adjust the dial till there was little static to where they could hear much clearer. They started to hear someone's voice, but not just any voice, it was General Dwight D. Eisenhower's. They heard something about a speech coming from the radio. "Must be a rerun I guess." stated Vick. Suddenly, the General's voice became more subtle and heartfelt as he started to speak:

"_**Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force! You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers-in-arms on other Fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world. Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely. But this is the year of 1944! Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41. The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeats, in open battle, man-to-man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground. Our Home Fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war, and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men. The tide has turned! The free men of the world are marching together to Victory! I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory! Good Luck! And let us all beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking."**_

They all fell silent after Peterson quietly turned off the radio, taking a deep breath. Jackson allowed a small tear to run down his face and fell onto the ground in a splash. The lionesses were confused yet astounded by such a moving speech, but did not know what the purpose really was for. Their surroundings was as quiet as an empty field, but full of life, until a curious cub squeaked out, "Who was that?" Charles looked down at the cub and took a breath of the fresh air, "That was the greatest man ever." he replied. "Charles? I need to speak to you for a second." Vick said out of the corner of Charles's eye. All he did was nod as they both departed the awestruck crowd of man and lion alike.


	15. Darkness Rises Forever

**Chapter 15**

**Darkness Rises Forever**

**"_In war, there are no unwounded soldiers." ~José Narosky_**

**June 6th, 1944, 1207 hours (12:07 p.m)**

Charles relaxed as the morning breeze blew across his face as Vickers and himself continued walking away from Pride Rock heading eastward, but the Airborne soldier was still wishing that Vick would stop soon to tell him what he wanted to speak to him about in the first place. Charles looked to his left to see a herd of Impala antelope gather around a small area and started to eat the grass. Charles's vision flashed and when he saw the sight again, it was not antelope that were eating the grass, they were soldiers covered in mud and blood. "Guys?" he quietly said. The soldiers did not respond nor stop. He opened his mouth in surprise and disbelief, these men were _his _men from the Pacific. His vision flashed again, continuing to stare into the eyes of the antelope. "You alright, Shelton?" asked Vick who was standing right next to Charles. Charles quickly looked at him and nodded, "Nothing." he said. Vickers just smiled and set his M1 onto the ground and laughed, "Looks like you just saw a ghost or something." Charles's thoughts trailed off to what he witnessed, "Yes, a ghost." Vick laughed again and turned around and made a cross across his chest, as he normally did every day. The squad all knew of Vick's undying relationship with his beliefs and respected him for it, for it was a sign of a good soldier to fight for his belief. Charles crossed his arms and scoffed, "How could you believe in something like religion in the middle of a goddamned war?" he asked. Vick looked like he was muttering something and turned around again, facing Charles. Charles thought to himself that he most likely offended Vick for using his Lord's name in vain, but he didn't waiver from his mind. Vick sighed, kissed his cross necklace, and tucked it inside his combat jacket, "Because I would have something to lose so that I could fight the war." Vick calmly mentioned. "What about your wife and daughter?" Charles questioned. Simba informed Charles of Vick writing his letter to his daughter that he never met because of the war. Vick was surprised and just took a few steps back. Charles started to listen to the animals of the Pride Lands going about their daily business while he awaited a response. Vick sighed and gently sat himself down onto the ground and pulled out the letter that he had been writing to his daughter. Charles leaned his head a bit in confusion by what was to happen. Vick shed a tear and wiped it away with his hand. "They say God created the land, the trees, the water, and the creatures." he said with a little breath in which Charles didn't notice. Charles didn't know what to think of what he was talking about, he just stood there and looked down at the ground with his eyes shut. Vick opened his pocket and slid the letter inside and buttoned it up; he then pulled out a cigarette and match and lighted the butt. "God also created the Krauts and Japs too, Vick." Charles quietly said. Vickers looked up at the young man and took a puff of his cigarette and exhaled, "So, what do you believe in?" he asked. Shelton didn't respond, he just continued to look down, for he himself didn't even know what to believe in anymore. The memories he faced flooded into his mind as he saw death, destruction, blood, and violence beyond mortal belief, but he knew it was real, because he was there. He could only think about the horrors he saw in the Pacific, including Guadalcanal where he lost everything he knew, his mentality, his God, but most of all, his brothers in arms. But suddenly, he started to sing, not in English, but another language:

"_Agus mo arm na deartháireacha chuaigh thar an hilltops, drenched i fola is féidir linn a bheith...ach tá ag troid ar chlé ar fad dom...In éineacht le mo arm na deartháireacha...titim síos againn...dorchadas i ngach...trí ifreann."_

Vick became engulfed into Charles's voice as his vocals echoed throughout the plains, but what he also noticed was that the antelope from before started to come closer to them both, as if they were drawn to the song's echo, like a trance of sorts. Charles took no notice, for he was in a state of deep thought. He repeated the song again, this time a bit louder than before:

"_Agus mo arm na deartháireacha chuaigh thar an hilltops, drenched i fola is féidir linn a bheith...ach tá ag troid ar chlé ar fad dom...In éineacht le mo arm na deartháireacha...titim síos againn...dorchadas i ngach...trí ifreann."_

Charles stopped and opened his eyes from his solemn state and gently clenched his hands into loose fists and took a deep breath:

_"And my army of brothers went over the hilltops, drenched in blood we may be...but fighting is all left to me...Together with my army of brothers...down we fall...darkness in all...through hell."_

A moment of silence sweeped over the crowd who took part in this emotional moment, then started to disperse, leaving the two men to themselves. Vick still couldn't come up with a single word to comment on the event that unfolded, but Charles broke the silence with a breath and quietly said, "I don't have any belief." Vick stood up, took off his helmet, and scratched his dark red hair, "What language was that?" he asked the calm Airborne soldier. Charles also removed his helmet, revealing his brunette hair and nodded. "Irish Gaelic, Vick." he answered. Vick didn't respond, all he did was reach into one of the pockets of his G.I pack and pulled out a small box of a light black color. Vick blew off the minor dust that remained on the top of the box and gave a smile, "Congratulations Sergeant Charles Shelton." he said with great respect and with his free hand, saluted the young soldier. Vick slowly opened the box revealing the stripes of a Sergeant within the interior and laid the box in Charles's hand. Charles looked down at the stripes in surprise and back at Vick with a confused look on his dirtied face, "Why do I deserve this promotion?" he asked eagerly. Vick chuckled slightly and laid his hand on Charles's left shoulder, "Because you are the only one in the squad with any combat experience and leadership, that's why!" he explained to the dumbfounded man. Charles slid Vickers's hand off of his shoulder, closed the box, and stuck it into his pocked, not saying a word. Vick laughed and gave a gentle nudge on Shelton's shoulder with his hand, "Bet Vitani will be all over you now, huh bud?" he said childish-like. Charles shrugged and rubbed his eyes with a hand. "Is this what you wanted to speak to me about?" he asked in annoyance. Vick stretched his arms a bit and sighed, "Yep, so you better head on back and sew that baby on, eh?" he responded. Charles has never seen Vickers act this childlike before, even when they were still on base with the Major General, and so he started to become suspicious. He nodded and turned around and started to walk towards the path they were walking before until he heard a _BOOM _from behind him. When he turned around in alertness and worry, he saw Vick holding his neck as blood started to seep through his fingers and splash onto the ground. "VICK!!!" cried Charles as he grabbed Vick and helped him down onto the ground next to his M1 rifle and started to cover the wound. As he cleared the blood away, he saw that it was a wound from a bullet. Blood was coughed out of Vicks mouth as he struggled to breath, but they both knew that he only had limited air because the blood was flooding and chocking the young man. Charles felt blood splash against his face and jacket as he finished tying the tourniquet around Vickers's neck, seeing the blood soak the inside of the cloth. Charles didn't know what else to do, except try and stop the bleeding, which wasn't going very well for him, there was too much blood escaping Vick's body to do much for him. Charles heard a rustle in the grass and looked up in the distance and saw someone running away from the bloody scene with a rifle in hand, so Charles, in anger, grabbed Vick's M1 Garand and hurried after the man. Charles started to chase the figure for a few feet until he stopped and took aim through the iron sights of the rifle and picked his shot. Once he found his target in his aim, he fired a round, scoring him in the back, but Charles took no chances and fired two more times, all landing in the mans torso, and fell into the ground. Charles ran in triumph and anger towards the body, but when he reached the body of the soldier, it wasn't a body yet, the bastard was still alive. He immediately identified the uniform, for he was a German sniper, but when the man turned around to face Charles with his M1 aimed at his head, it wasn't a man at all, it was a boy! Around the age of thirteen to sixteen he was. Charles's eyes widened at the face of his attacker, with great reluctance to shoot the young boy. All the boy could say from his blood-soaked mouth was, "Papa?" Now Charles had much doubt in himself to execute this boy, but he looked back at his dying friend, who was still holding his neck which he could now no longer see any skin on it, for it was completely covered in his own blood. Charles grew furious with anger and hatred and pulled the trigger, the bullet landing between the eyes as the boy fell to the ground dead. Charles continued to look down at the body of the young boy as smoke from the Garand's muzzle flowed into the air and then out of sight, and then ran back to his friend. He set the M1 to the side and gripped Vick's hand with both of his own hands and started to give a tear. Vick was trying to speak through the blood, but all that could came out was, "Send me out with a bang." in which Charles couldn't believe his ears. He couldn't kill a small boy AND his friend in the same day, but Vick weakly grabbed his Colt and pushed it into Charles's chest, tears coming down from Vick's face. Charles took the pistol and stared at its bloody exterior and shook his head, "I can't." he exclaimed. Vick flinched as his throat became completely full of blood and tried to speak but couldn't. Charles knew that Vick wouldn't survive, but he still didn't want to put the gun to his head and pull the trigger, he has seen too many of his own men die to see it again. Vick grabbed Charles by his Jacket and brought his face closer to his own and weakly nodded. Vick coughed out enough blood for him to say his last words to his most trusted soldier with a smile on his face, "I'll see you in Heaven." Charles broke free gently and took a deep breath, putting the gun muzzle against Vick's skull and gave a few more tears as his finger met the trigger of the pistol. He wiped his tears away with his other hand and nodded and quietly said to his friend the last time, "No, you won't." and pulled the trigger.

**Hey! Spartansoldier2 here! Hope you liked the chapter. A little sad, I know. I got a few questions by some readers about the inclusion of the young German boy, and the answer is yes, the Germans did sometimes use children as soldiers in desperate times in World War II. And the song I did not make, the name of the song is Lament by Light of Aidan. The lyrics are really in Irish Gaelic. The reason why I chose to put the song in this chapter is to show that the combat in the Pacific really affected Charles in many aspects of his life, for the songs meaning is really about brotherhood in war. To hear the song version that I was inspired by, go to Youtube and look up the Halo 3: ODST live action trailer. The song playing is the song that Charles sings in this chapter. Thank you and come again!**


	16. Lament

**Chapter 16**

**Lament**

"_**Men are at war with each other because each man is at war with himself." ~Francis Meehan**_

**June 6th, 1944, 1800 hours (06:00 p.m)**

The animals of the Pride Lands fell silent as an empty tomb as the brilliant light of the sunset shined on the erect M1 rifle that stuck out from the soft dirt with a bloodied helmet perched up on top of the butt of the rifle. "Atten...hut!" cried Jackson and the entire pride stood still as night as a soldier in his uniform marched out in front of the burial sight of his fellow man. The man indeed was Sergeant Charles Shelton as he made a right face and faced the new Corporal and saluted. Jackson, Peterson, and O'Brian stood and saluted, ready to perform any request that their ally wished. Charles did an about face and took a few steps and went to rest with a stop. He saluted again as a young lioness stook an American flag next to the rifle with her own teeth and stepped back into her line. "Present...ARMS!" ordered Charles. Jackson and Peterson saluted as Simon took a few steps forward, cornet in hand, and brought the instrument to his lips. The pride all rested their heads down at the ground in respect as the commando started to perform taps for everyone to witness. As O'Brian finished, he took steps back into his position as Jackson and Peterson stepped up themselves with their weapons ready. Charles noticed a few of the little cubs cover their ears to suppress the loud bang from the rifles that they knew was to come. "FIRE!" he ordered. The men fired a round from their weapons into the orange sky and waited three seconds and fired again. This went on for four more shots. When they finished, they too stepped back and shouldered their weapons. Not a sound was made after such a performance by these great men, but Charles was still saluting the grave. He brought his hand back to his side and did another about face, eyeing his men before giving a speech that some say that the Zulu's of the area still remember to this day:

"Everyone, I personally did not know everything about Corporal Alexander Vickers, but I do know this; he was one of the greatest soldiers I had the privilege of serving next to. He was a man out of the great state of New Jersey, a member of the 2nd Rangers in the US Army, and had a wife and daughter. Sadly, he never met his daughter because of this whole goddamned war, but I will be sure to have it so that she will know who this man is."

Charles pulls out the bloody letter from his pocket.

"This letter is to his own daughter of four years, in which I will personally deliver to his own damn doorstep."

He puts the letter back into one of his jacket pockets.

"Vick was my friend. He was a soldier, but more importantly, he was a protector of the United States of America and whatever is left of the Free World. I swear on his grave that I will fight to my life's end to bring justice out of this war and send that son of a bitch Hitler straight to HELL! This death has sadly made the Pride Lands lose its innocence from this war, so now we shall fight back, for the Nazi's won't stop until we are all dead. For Vick, for Africa, for the Pride Lands, for freedom! Burial detail, dismissed!"

In less than ten minutes, the area was clear of all life, all except for Charles who stayed behind with the grave. He kneeled down in front of his friends resting place and gave a little nod. "Goodbye, my friend. Rest well. You deserve it." He stood up and gave him one last salute and started his way up the back of Pride Rock towards the main den, ready to prepare for the many hardships that lay ahead for them all in the future.

----To Be Continued In Book II----


End file.
